Dear Claudia
by Swamp Fairy
Summary: "Dear Claudia, I'm sorry you're dead." Letters to Claudia from her replacement as the new girl deals with the team's reactions to losing their tech genius and tries to find her own place at the Warehouse.
1. Chapter 1

Dear Claudia,

I'm sorry you're dead. Wait. That's kind of a harsh way to start this whole thing. Let me try again.

* * *

Dear Claudia,

That really sucks that you read one of Hitchcock's original script and got pecked to death by birds. Actually, that's an even worse way to start this. One more time.

* * *

Dear Claudia,

I wish I could have met you. There we go.

I wish I could have met you. From what I've heard, it sounds like you were a really cool girl. But even if you were alive now, we still never would have met since I'm only here because of what happened to you. I'm your replacement.

My name's Ellie Shaw, I'm 23 years old, and I'm a genius. Not as smart as you, by all accounts, but my IQ is a good 70 points above average. I'm bright enough to land myself your job, anyway. Tech wiz of Warehouse 13. And I don't think I'm quite ready to address the reality of that yet. I'm working in a carnival funhouse filled with magical, killer objects? Well, I guess they aren't all killers, since Pavlov's Bell just makes you drool. But a lot of them are killers. And if that isn't terrifying enough, I'm expected to sort through them and label them and catalogue them. And occasionally go chasing after them when they're out wreaking havoc in the world. So yeah, I'm operating on two Advil and three cans of Redbull right now as I try to wrap my head around this. Maybe that's why I'm writing to you.

Mrs. Frederick picked me up. And by that, I mean she apparated into my living room and invited me on a journey to wonder and adventure. Creepy much? But apparently that's how she always is. She sent me to a B&B and promised that I would meet my team members in the morning. I already met Leena, though. She had a plate of cookies waiting for me, so I'm thinking we're going to get along. She was weird too, telling me that I had a good aura. Is everyone here that odd? I hope not, since that would probably mean I'm that odd as well.

Mrs. F didn't mention you to me, by the way. Maybe she thought that knowing my predecessor was killed on the job would scare me away. I'd like to think she was right, but probably I'd have come anyways. All I'll say about that is that I needed a change and this was up my alley. But anyways, Leena was the one who told me about you. Showed me a picture, too. You were pretty. Wish I looked more like you and less like me.

Leena warned me that it might take a little while for the others to warm up to me. "Everyone loved Claudia," she told me. "Everyone thought it was their job to protect her." I guess they did a pretty crappy job of it. No, I don't mean that. Sorry. I promise to work on the 'snide' thing. But really, I won't judge them until I meet them. After all, they must have balls of steel to work in a place like this.

One more thing. HG Wells. The HG Wells? Seriously? That's the coolest thing I've heard, like, ever. I read all of his, I mean her, books when I was younger. I cannot wait to meet her. Still not clear on how she's still alive, but hopefully that'll get explained sooner or later. If Leena'd given me too much more explanation, my brain might have started trickling out of my ears.

So to recap: wish I'd met you, terrified to be here, wondering just how weird I am to have been hired at Warehouse 13.

Oh, and I really am sorry you're dead. That sounds sarcastic, but it's not. 108 people die every minute, and somehow, each death still manages to be a tragedy. That's what keeps us human.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**I couldn't even tell you where this idea came from. It's fun and relatively easy to write, so updates will be frequent. Please review! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

Dear Claudia,

Hey there. Me again. It hasn't been long since I last wrote to you (less than 24 hours, right?), but things here are freaking insane and I wish there was someone I could talk to. Leena's nice, but even she's still too hung up on you to actually want to be around me. You really must have been all that and a glass of coke, huh?

I met the other team members and I have to say, it wasn't the warmest welcome I've ever had the privilege of receiving. HG Wells was the biggest letdown, I think, just because I was so excited to meet her. She gave me this stiff smile and shook my hand. "Welcome to the Warehouse, darling," she said, then made some excuse to run off. Of course, she was better than Pete. The second I walked in the room, he tried to walk away. Myka grabbed him, though, and made him introduce himself. I don't think he even looked me in the face once. It's not like I look like you or anything.

Myka was the coolest by far. She was the one who showed me around the Warehouse. She said a lot of the same things Leena did- that it would take a little time for the others to adjust to me, that they were all still missing you. I get it. It just kind of sucks. Anyways, she's maybe the first person I've met who's read more than I have, and that woman is _smart_. Not techno-smart, but aside from that, I doubt there's a whole lot she doesn't know. I think I had the same problem with her that I did with Leena: I can tell they want to be my friend, but whenever they look at me they're seeing you. Unfortunately, even though I'm doing your job, I can't be you. I know they wish I could be, and I wish I could be too, just a little.

There's one other agent I haven't met yet, Steve Jinks. He was out on an assignment, Myka said, and you were his best friend. She assured me that despite the best-friends thing, he'd be friendlier than Pete or HG. It wouldn't take much to be friendlier than them, so I don't have high hopes, but who knows. She did tell me he was a gay Buddhist. Cool. I didn't know that was a thing.

You know, I haven't even met my boss yet. Artie Nielsen. Myka apologized and said that he'd meet me later, but didn't give me a reason. That could mean one of three things:  
1) There's some reasonable explanation, like with Jinks being out of town.  
2) He's missing you even more than the others are.  
Or 3) He was battling the evil juju of someone's old sock or something.  
I guess I'll find out when I meet him.

God, the Warehouse. I don't even know what to say. Am I locked up in a mental asylum somewhere and hallucinating all of this? I can hardly believe it's real. Magic is right. Honestly, I'm not sure where science and technology could possibly fit into this place, but you made it fit so there's got to be a way. I wandered through isle after isle of magical kettles, flowers, paintings, mirrors, and I'm pretty sure I saw a magical toilet plunger. It's insane. I'd love to play with some of this stuff, but after what happened to you, I'm suitably convinced that that's a bad idea.

Luckily I didn't have to do any work today- Myka said that they understood I'd probably need a day or two to get used to everything. Is she ever right. We go through life thinking that we have most, if not all, of the answers, but every once in a while something will just come out of left field and hit us over the head with a baseball bat to remind us that we don't actually know anything at all.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Aww. C'mon, guys... review? Pretty please? Hope you liked it! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

Dear Claudia,

Wow, I've had quite a day. I would say I hope you've enjoyed yourself except, well, you know. Sorry. Guess I'm just a little peeved at the world. Peeved and awed. It's an unusual combination for me.

I met Jinks today and Myka was right, he was a lot nicer than HG and Pete. Today I was supposed to start inventorying things, and he offered to help me out since he always helped Claudia with it and "it's a big job for one girl." His words, not mine. But he seemed completely relaxed around me, even more so than Myka or Leena. He's got this sort of dry sense of humor... but you know that, of course. I asked him, during lunch, why he was alright with me being here when everyone else wasn't.

"I'm more wondering why they're not okay with you being here," he told me. "You're not her. You're not trying to be her. I don't get the problem."

So there we go- one person who doesn't mind me being around. It's nice, too. But he just lost his best friend, and I don't think he's looking for a new one, so I'd better keep writing to you for the time being. Besides, his greeting wasn't quite enough to make up for what I received from Artie. Maybe someday the two of us will look back on this and laugh, but somehow I doubt it.

As it turns out, reason number 2 (missing you) was why I didn't meet him yesterday, and almost didn't meet him today, either. Myka called me into the main office. She told me I was going to meet my new boss, and about two minutes later, he strode into the room. Funny little guy, isn't he? Crazy eyebrows. Anyways, he was talking before the door had opened for him. "What is it now, Myka?" Then he saw me and he went pale as this paper.

"I told you," he practically shouted at her. "I don't want to see her yet!"

"You have to see her sooner or later," Myka retorted, and I was feeling bad for her at this point, even though she didn't back down one iota. I tried to tell her it was okay, but she just brushed me off. "Mind your manners, Artie!"

He turned to me and grabbed my hand, shaking it so hard I thought my shoulder might pop out of my socket. "Nice to meet you," he growled. "You won't be interacting with me much. Do what the senior agents tell you." And he turned and stormed right back out of the room.

Myka wouldn't really meet my eyes. "It's not just you," she said. "He's drawing away from all of us. He... well, Claudia was his favorite. When Pete and I first started at the Warehouse, I'd hoped he and I might connect like that, you know? And if it was anyone but Claudia, I'd probably have been jealous. But she just needed it so much, and no one could help but love her once they got to know her. Anyways, losing her destroyed him."

I guess I stuttered out a reply, I don't really remember. I just wanted to get out of there and back to handling the hammer that summons lightening and the spoon that glues itself to the inside of your mouth and whatnot. When it comes to emotions, I'm in over my head, particularly when I'm partially causing the emotions. Seriously, everyone in this place is a powder keg. The tiniest thing might just set them off.

I didn't see HG today, although I did run into Pete. "Hey, I'm sorry I brushed you off yesterday," he said. "It's all a little hard right now. There are some things even cookies can't fix."

I'm paraphrasing all of this, keep in mind. He may have said burritos. I can't remember. Anyways, the meaning was clear, and I appreciated it. He still hurried off as soon as he got a chance, though, and half an hour later Artie was staring at me with near-horror in his eyes. So I'm feeling a little unwelcome, under-appreciated, and alone at the moment, and it looks like I'm going to be here for a while.

My personal life is a little lacking, and my work life is a little overwhelming. Still, it's all worth it in the end. The Warehouse is breathtaking (and that's the first time I've ever used that word, so you know I'm serious) and just knowing how much more is out there is enough to convince me to push through.

Oh, and Myka promised I'd get to play with computers soon. So there we go.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to Chinagirl18 for reviewing! Anyone else have any comments for me? Hope everyone enjoyed.**


	4. Chapter 4

Dear Claudia,

Well, I got knocked down a few pegs today. By you, I might add. I've spent my whole life thinking that I'm a genius with computers, but clearly you could have run rings around me. I booted up your hard drive today, and then spent a straight seven hours trying to break the encryption and log in. It's never taken me more than two hours before, and I'm talking about hacking into FBI stuff. If you're trashing me, you're making them look like kindergarteners playing around on their parents' computer.

Once I finally got onto your computer system and was able to switch things around a bit to make it a little more user-friendly (for me, anyways), I did the first thing any socially-inept tech nerd would do: run a background check on the team members. Probably they wouldn't be thrilled, but it doesn't look like we'll be having heart-to-hearts anytime soon. Some tragedy in each past, of course- Pete's father, Steve's sister, Myka's partner-slash-lover-slash-friend, HG's daughter, Leena's parents. Artie wasn't as much a 'who' as it was 'everything in his life,' so I can see why losing you would put him over the edge. No real surprises in there (though I really and truly can't see Myka having an affair), although when I looked for Mrs. Frederick, I found zip. Nothing. She doesn't have a file in the database- your database, anyway.

I looked up you, too. I guess I was hoping it would help me get to know you. Reading about people in Times New Roman is the best way to get to know them, 90% of the time. With you, it's not helping. I think you're simultaneously too close and too far away. You, my dear, are an enigma.

Myka and Pete got called out on a case today. I wasn't sure how agent pairs work, so Steve told me that Pete and Myka are usually partners, and he and Claudia used to be partners, although Claudia would go on cases with Artie sometimes. Apparently HG is still on the Regents' watchlist for trying to destroy the world, so she's limited in the missions she's allowed to go on, and she has to go with Pete or Artie.

1) What are Regents?

2) HG tried to destroy the world?

I asked Steve, but he said I'd had enough brain-overload for the day. I went into your files for answers, of course, and got them. Steve was right: too much brain overload. I headed back to the B&B for cookies. HG had beat me to them, and between meeting her the other day and my newfound knowledge of her apocalypse-harbringing side, I was rather wary. She invited me to sit down, though, and told me about some of her inventions. Now there was the HG Wells I was hoping for.

I hope I'm not going to be limited to just computers. Someday (not quite yet), I'd like to go out on missions too. I used to love spy movies when I was a kid; wished I was in them. This is all that and more. Getting stuck with the desk job would suck.

No Artie today, thankfully. We eat meals separately. Well, I think Pete and Myka and HG eat together sometimes, but not the rest of us. The Warehouse is a big enough place that you can go practically the whole day without bumping into someone. I don't know how much I like this. I'm on a team now, but I just feel alone.

Some people want to be with others when tragedy strikes. I was never one of those people, and it looks like some of my team members aren't either. I don't know why they don't like it. I just hate to have to pretend.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to Chinagirl18, KristieM, and Guest for reviewing! Seriously, reading your feedback always makes me smile :) I hope they tell us Leena's real backstory soon, btw.**


	5. Chapter 5

Dear Claudia,

I screwed up today, big time. I thought Steve was my best bet for a new friend here since he seemed to be the only one who wasn't comparing me to you. Too good to last, I guess. Today I called him Jinksy. I figured it was a logical nickname with a last name of Jinks, but evidently that was _your_ nickname for him. He went all pale and stammered for a minute before asking me to _please_ not call him that again and getting out of the room as quickly as he could.

Sugar Honey Iced Tea.

I'm pissed at myself, but at the same time, how am I supposed to know this stuff? I can't just avoid doing everything you used to do, saying the things you used to say, acting how you used to act. I'm doing my best to be myself. We're both lonely, traumatized tech geeks (or I am and you were, I guess). Of course some of our mannerisms are going to intersect.

In other news, Pete and HG have continued to warm up to me and Leena's beignets are SERIOUSLY the best breakfast food, like, in the world. The second half of that sentence needs no elaboration. The first half: you probably don't care, but I'll tell you anyways.

HG taught me some fighting. She tracked me down doing inventory to ask how much self-defense I knew, and when the answer was "kick them in the gonads?" she took me to her Whoop Ass 101 room in the Warehouse and spent a good three hours teaching me that your thumb doesn't go inside your fist.

(Sidenote: Are she and Myka a thing? Actually. Myka came in to help out about halfway through, and the UST levels were Mulder-and-Scully level off the scale.)

Pete stole my food at dinner, and even though I don't think I've seen Myka go a full meal able to protect everything on her plate, I don't think he does that to people he doesn't like. So that was nice. Even if it was some of the best damned spaghetti I'd ever had. Between Pete and Trailer, the women of the Warehouse probably only end up eating half of the food that gets served.

My mother called me today. I don't know how she even got my new number; I'd asked my social worker not to give it to her. Cell phones don't seem to get reception in the Warehouse so I'd left it in my bedroom. She left a rambling message full of static. All I could decipher was a long-winded apology, and her plea at the end for me to call her. I haven't yet. I don't know if I'm going to.

Sometimes it seems like no matter how far we run, we just can't get away from our pasts. The Warehouse seemed like it was going to be a safe haven, but maybe no one can escape their own story for too long. Our stories make us who we are.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Sorry for the delay! I was at the beach with limited laptop access, but I'm back now. Thanks to Chinagirl18, Nessa30, mondler1998, Timetrixter22, and parkitcharlie (your review made me laugh :D) for commenting! Y'all keep me writing, seriously.**

**UST: Unresolved Sexual Tension.  
Sugar Honey Iced Tea: First letter of every word.  
Mulder and Scully: If you haven't seen The X-Files... just go watch it.**


	6. Chapter 6

Dear Claudia,

Today started out at about a 0.5 on the Good Day Scale and ended up hovering just above a 7. A pretty good climb, but it started out just awful. I didn't want to run into Steve this morning so I got up early, ate breakfast alone, and headed over to the Warehouse to play with the computers before I had to get to work on inventory. I suppose I should have figured Artie was also an early riser, but it didn't even cross my mind. Anyways, I noticed him before the office door had swung shut behind me. He was sitting at the keyboard, playing a pretty neat tune I'd never heard before. I knew it was something private, just knew it, but I couldn't bring myself to interrupt him.

He didn't finish playing the piece, I know that, but maybe that's all there is of it, because when he stopped he reached for the yellowed sheet music with a pen. _Did he write that himself?_ I wondered, and coughed quietly to make my presence known. He jumped, then froze for a moment, then slowly turned around. When he saw me, his eyes narrowed and he stood up, like, in slow-motion.

"That was... that was really nice," I said, trying to be friendly, and I'm pretty sure my voice cracked. I think I knew exactly how he'd react.

"Get. Out. Now."

And I knew then that I was in deep doo doo, but I fearlessly forged on. Kamikaze, right?

"Look, we got off to a rough start, but I'm going to be here for a while, and I'd like to not have to tip toe around you all the time."

He took a deep breath, clenching his fists. "You don't belong here, and this is none of your business_._ Just leave me alone!"

"Fine!" I shouted, and okay, maybe I was angry, but I'd been here a good week and was farther away from having any real friends than ever and Artie was the worst of all and I was sick of it. "But quit pretending like I don't exist because it won't bring her back!" I probably shouldn't have actually pushed him when I passed, but you can forgive me. Or not, I guess, but since you can't tell me I'll assume you forgive me.

Everything was lame until after lunch. I was planning on just raiding the fridge Pete keeps stocked in his hide-out (I wasn't even snooping; I walked into it after about 20 minutes on the ground floor), but Steve came and found me. He apologized for freaking yesterday and invited me into Univille for lunch, said he was going in with Myka and they thought I might enjoy exploring the town.

The three of us just wandered around for a good hour. There's diddly squat to do there except look at the surburban houses and scrub-land, but I wasn't about to complain about spending time with any of them. I do catch them watching me when they think I'm not looking with the freaking _saddest_ experessions, like I kicked their puppy or something, but I'll put up with that for now. Better than nothing.

Back to work after lunch, and in the evening we all ate dinner together, 'cept for Artie, of course. Leena's so funny, the way she fusses over everyone. "You're aura's off color," she asked Pete, all anxious. "Are you doing alright?" Even when he said he was, she slipped an extra half of a cob of corn on his plate. She hasn't gotten to that point with me yet. Someday, maybe.

I went up and listened to the message from mom again, saved it to my phone but didn't call her back. My self-esteem's still a few notches above where it needs to be for me to talk to her. One more run-in with Artie, though, and I'll probably be about ready. We'll see.

So maybe things will shape up. Too early too tell. Of course, maybe it's just the eye of the hurricaine. Things change more quickly than you'd expect, or maybe you just don't notice as they change. Like watching your friends grow up, you know? We only see it when we're really looking.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to Daddy's Little Pyro, StormageddonDarkLordofAll, mondler1998, Chinagirl18, and Parkitcharlie (again with the hilarious reviews!) for leaving your thoughts! I can't fit in one author's note how much I appreciate it :)**

**Kamikaze: Suicide attacks by the Japanese during WWII.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Let me just clarify real quick: I LOVE Claudia. The sun, stars, and moon revolve around this girl. She's pretty much the best thing to happen to TV since Diana Rigg. I just don't want anyone second guessing me after this chapter. I try to only kill the characters I love most. That being said, the squeamish may want to proceed with caution.**

* * *

Dear Claudia,

It's a little after midnight and I'm writing under my covers with a flashlight. It's been, like, years since I did this, but tonight I needed it. I could tell you about my day, but almost none of it is important. Today was defined by the fifteen minutes after lunch and pretty much everything else just fades away. I'm pretty sure I'm going to remember everything Artie said to me, word for word, until the day I die.

For someone who did an awful lot of crying when I was younger, I really don't have a clue what to do when other people start. That goes double when it's my boss, someone who I don't know well, or someone who can't stand the sight of me. All three in the same person? I'd be more likely to grow wings and fly to Mars than be able to respond appropriately.

I was just leaving the B&B to head back to the Warehouse after lunch when HG came up and took my arm. "Artie wants to see you," she said in this low, serious voice.

"Artie?" I wondered. "Is he being affected by an artifact? I'm pretty sure he doesn't want to see me."

"He wants to explain," she told me. "Try to... just try to be sensitive, darling."

"Alright?"

She led me to the library in the B&B, looked me in the eye outside the door. I thought she was going to say something, but without a word she turned and headed off. I considered just walking in, but remembering how Artie had reacted last time I tried that, I knocked instead.

"Come in," he called out in his gruff voice. Tentatively I entered. He was staring out the window, or would have been if the shades hadn't been down.

"HG said you wanted to see me," I said.

"I'm not going to apologize." He didn't even turn to face me.

"Fine." I felt my back straightening and clenched my fists.

"I'm going to explain."

An explanation wouldn't make much difference, I didn't think. So he'd lost someone he cared about. Everyone lost someone they cared about at some point, and I was sick of how he was treating me. "Shoot," I said cooly.

Finally he turned around and I could see right then he was angry- at me, for sure, but at the whole world, looked like. "They told you how it happened, didn't they?" he asked. "Oh yes, they figure if you can't take that story then you're not cut out for the job. But that's all it is: a story. You disconnect it, hear it and believe it but not really. And what they don't tell you is what it does to the people left behind."

I start to speak, don't even know what I want to say, but he raises his hand. "Don't say a word." I nod and he continues. "I found her. They didn't tell you that, why would they? They didn't tell you that she never showed up for dinner, told Leena she'd be there and we all sat around the table just waiting. No one believed that anything was wrong, she was just doing inventory, what could go wrong? The jobs are dangerous. The Warehouse is a safe place.

"I volunteered to go find her, told them to go ahead and eat without me. Steve said he'd come too and we drove over, laughing as we drove, frustrated with her for having lost track of time, because that's all it was, we were so damn certain.

"We split up in the Warehouse, figured it would go faster. We'd tried her Farnsworth but she was always leaving it in the office, so her not answering didn't raise any red flags. I just wandered up and down the isles, shouting her name, completely oblivious, until I turned a corner and there she was.

"There was so much blood. I knew she was gone at once, because she was drenched in it, head to toe. It was in her hair, her mouth, her clothes. It dripped from between her fingers and under her eyelids, and everything was scarlet and she was so still and quiet, my brilliant, beautiful girl..." Here was where he lost it, tears dripping down his cheeks and I stood transfixed and horrified and at a loss. "And I kneeled there and held her, knowing that I'd been too late and she'd died alone and terrified... Leena burned my clothes afterwards because she refused to try to wash her blood out.

"It could be anyone. HG, Steve..." His voice got even weaker. "Pete or Myka. You. I will not go through that again. Cannot. HG was bronzed because she nearly lost her mind after losing her child, and I used to hate her for it. Now... Now I'm incredulous she lasted as long as she did. They didn't tell you how it feels like your heart is being ripped out, like you'll never breathe or smile again. Like..." And he couldn't speak anymore, just choked and turned away.

I should have gone to him, comforted him, told him what had happened to me, promised him it would be okay. I don't know. Looking back, I should have done something. Instead, I turned and ran and feel like crap about it.

I don't have anything insightful for you today, and if I don't put this up soon, I might start crying on the page. I'll let his story speak for itself.

He loves you, Claudia. I hope you know that, wherever you are.

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to parkitcharlie (congrats on getting your hw done!), Chinagirl18, mondler1998, Daddy's Little Pyro (and you're getting mentioned again!), and rainpath for reviewing! You guys are the best. Seriously.**


	8. Chapter 8

Dear Claudia,

I called my mom this morning. Aren't you proud of me?

I woke up with mascara streaks down my face and pillow and decided that today could only go up, so I took out my phone and scrolled to her name and dropped it and picked it up and pressed send.

Right now I'm locked in my room. Not going to work today. Evidently it was not an "could only go up" sort of day.

Leena brought up breakfast and left it outside of my door for me. I heard her tell Myka not to push me, that maybe I just needed a day to let my brain catch up. Bullshit.

I'm angry and sad and scared and lonely and my only friend is a dead girl I've never even met. I'm sick of everything and I just want to sleep for weeks.

You're lamer than an imaginary friend and I'm done writing to you.

Ellie

* * *

**Super short chapter... but it's to make a point, and I promise to update tomorrow, and anyways you can forgive me cuz the last one was long. Thanks to Daddy's Little Pyro, Chinagirl18, CyanB, StormageddonDarkLordofAll, mondler1998, and parkitcharlie (this is going to get repetitive, but your reviews really do crack me up!) for reviewing! So many feels I want to feel.**


	9. Chapter 9

Dear Claudia,

Okay. So obviously I had kind of hit a low point the last time I wrote to you. Sorry about that. I really shouldn't take my anger out on someone who's dead, after all. Pinky swear it won't happen again!

It was Pete who brought me around. I wasn't expecting that at all. I would have put money on Leena or Myka for a Glee-worthy pep-talk. But no, after what felt like a million hours of holding a pillow and staring at the wall, there was a tapping at my window. I looked over to see that Pete had climbed the tree outside the B&B and was holding a box of Oreos. Milk's Best Friend- how's a girl supposed to resist? So I went and opened the window and let him in.

"Smelly Ellie," he greeted me, and I knew he had finally warmed up to me. But I was still ready to punch something at that point so I just took the cookies and sat without a word. He plopped down next to me. "Look, I know I don't have a clue what sort of stuff you're dealing with now. But I want you to know that we all have skeletons in our closet, so we totally get it. And if you ever want to talk..."

"It's my mom," I blurted out. Stupid mouth. I've always been a chatterbox. "She wants me to come have dinner with her and my stepdad."

"That's bad?"

"Yeah, that's bad."

He peels apart two Oreos and moves the mystery-white-stuff from one cookie to the other, replacing the top cookie bit and giving it to me. "Double decker," he points out.

"My dad died when I was little," I tell him.

"Mine did too."

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

"Well, I barely remember him. But my mom got remarried when I was 11 years old. After a year, I was put into foster care after I told a social worker what her new husband was doing to me."

Pete just sort of looked at me.

"Mom refused to believe me. She was so angry, for so long, accusing me of looking for attention, of looking for petty revenge- she refused to hear anything bad about him. I had a pretty good foster family, but visits with my mom and him were just torture. I went to college when I was 16 and was able to break off most my communication with them. I was hoping that when I moved here, I would be done with the both of them, but she's apparently decided she can forgive me and wants me to come reconnect with them. I just hung up on her. Why she would possibly think that I would be..." I couldn't even find the words._  
_

"That sucks," Pete said, and for some reason, that was all he needed to say to make me feel better.

"Yeah."

And then he gave me a hug and we were quiet for a little while, and then he suggested his angsty-place movie. So he got the movie and popcorn and extra butter and a jar of Nutella and HG and all three of us watched The Aristocats.

Forget my mom and forget Henry. The Warehouse is a better place to be than anywhere I've been in a while, and when you find a decent place and decent people to go along with it, you better hold onto them for all it's worth cause who knows if you'll get another chance.

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

******ALERT! ALERT! IMPORTANT STUFF! Well, important-ish, anyway. Is there anyone reading who's also an artist? I totally want a picture of Ellie, but I really can't draw... if you are and you'd be willing to draw one for no compensation but a sense of pride, send me a message! :)**

**Thanks to MiDushiNoSushi, mondler1998, CyanB (now you made me want to write that!), 1-Shadowkun (plot twist indeed, lol!), Fallon Monroe, Chinagirl18, and Parkitcharlie for reviewing! You guys are my favorites :D**

**Glee: If you don't know about this show, you must be living under a rock.**

**The Aristocats: A fantabulous Disney movie. I don't know why, I just totally see Pete would watching it when he was sad and singing along and bawling.**


	10. Chapter 10

Dear Claudia,

Plot twist? I think I just got assigned to my first mission. Also, maybe Artie doesn't hate me anymore? We sort of made peace, I guess. That sounds totally cheesy, but whatever. You're dead; you're not judging.

I got to the Warehouse a little early, determined to make up for time I'd lost yesterday. I started right in on upgrading the Dark Vault motion detectors which, according to Leena, were upsetting the artifacts. Artie, of course, was the second one to arrive, appearing in the office behind me. I spun around to talk to him before he could head down to the floor.

"Look, I wanted to say I'm sorry I ran off the other day while we were talking. I think I just kind of freaked out."

To my surprise, he didn't look upset. He looked like he was almost smiling? I've seen him smile in pictures- in a picture, anyways, of you and him- but never in real life. "That's alright," he said gruffly. "It was a lot to put on you.:

I nodded, unsure of what to say.

"Well? Get back to work," he said without bite.

"Sure," I agreed, giving him a grin.

"Uh," he started, stopping right before the exit. "I hope you can deal with whatever was bothering you yesterday. If you need anything..."

"Thanks."

"Anytime." Without another word, he heads away.

Ah, but about the mission! I was-

Sorry, I'm back. That was Myka. She said I needed to pack up to go, but I'll finish writing on the plane!

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to parkitcharlie (and Alison!), CyanB (haha, not in this story, but maybe a sequel?), MiDushiNoSushi, Chinagirl18, 1Shadow-kun, and Daddy's Little Pyro! Cyber cookies to all.**

**I'm sorry about the delay- senior year of high school just started. I know this isn't long, but I needed to get another chapter in! I'll try my best to update real soon :)**


	11. Chapter 11

Dear Claudia,

Okay. I know I left you with a cliffhanger last time, and I can't say I didn't enjoy it, but I figured I'd better fill you in. I meant to write on the plane to explain, but I sort of kind of fell asleep, and anyways, I didn't know that much then anyways. All I knew when I last wrote to you was that Artie'd gotten a ping in California and I was going with Myka as my mentor on my first mission (honestly, I was sorting hoping for HG ((don't tell Myka!)) but I guess with the whole harbinger-of-doom thing they thought she'd be a bad influence).

So we get down there and give our luggage to a taxi driver to take to the hotel- that MUST be Artie's idea, it's the 21st century, for Pete's sake, you can't trust your grandmother- and picked up our rental car. In the drive, Myka filled me in: something with some bad juju was causing people to lose all emotion and gain about 100 IQ points. SAT scores were off the charts, and so were frantic parent complaints.

Myka neglected to inform me of where we were going: a mini LA comic-con.

I can rock out to that.

We got there and found the first guy who had been affected in the fantasy hallway, strictly informing an Alice why, exactly, her costume was completely un-period for the Carroll story.

"Hi," Myka said brightly, walking up to him. I followed behind her, a little shyer than I'd like to admit. What can I say? First mission, let's keep in mind. I wonder how you did.

Annoyed at being interrupted mid-schpiel, he turned to glare at her. "Yes? How may I help you?"

Let me clarify real quick. This kid looked _nothing_ like a genius. He was maybe 17 years old, kind of scrawny and pimply... he still had braces. Like, the most stereotypical nerd you could think of. Maybe I was rolling my eyes just a bit.

"I heard something unusual's happened to you in the past few days."

"That is correct. An IQ jump and a severe decrease in the emotional activity in my cerebellum."

"Exactly," Myka said. "What we want to know is if you've come into contact with anything strange in the past few days. Anything old, different looking..."

"Did you smell fudge?" I asked helpfully. Yes, I've been reading the manual.

He sneered at me and turned right back to Myka, who seemed to have passed some silent test. Probably cuz she could have whooped his ass at Jeopardy. "I don't have any recollection of such an occurrence. Perhaps if you could be more specific..."

"Not quite yet, I'm afraid. But have you experienced any other changes?"

He cocked his head to the side. "No. Just what I previously stated."

"Alright. I'd like to take down your contact info, if we need to get in touch with you."

"Some psychological foundation, I presume."

"APA. We're very interested in you."

He wrote down everything she asked for and handed the slip back to her.

"I'm sure we'll see you again soon," Myka said.

"Live long and prosper."

"Later," I called. Myka took my arm and headed off.

We're in the hotel room now; she's doing research on her laptop and eating Twizzlers. But she's telling me to call Artie. I'd better go. Updates later!

Cheers,

Ellie

* * *

**Thanks to SamLovesOneDirection, Daddy's Little Pyro, Timetrixter22, mondler1998, CyanB, MiDushiNoSushi, parkitcharlie, and Chinagirl18 (anytime! :D also I dislike your profile pic. Clargo all the way!) for reviewing... seriously, guys, this response is incredible. Also, excuse me for any bogus comi-con info- as much as I'd love to go, I have yet to visit one.**

**Any guesses to the artifact?**

**APA: American Psychological Association**

**Live long and prosper: Star Trek catch phrase**


End file.
